California's 2007 Grape Harvest Slightly Larger Than Last Year

According to the California Department of Food and Agriculture, the state’s 2007 grape harvest weighed in at 3.2 million tons, up a bit from 3.1 million tons last year. It is still substantially smaller than 2005, which weighed 3.5 million tons.

Because of inconsistent temperatures and weather patterns, grape picking was sporadic in 2007. Temperatures were warm through August, but September saw some rain, forcing many vineyard owners to delay picking their grapes until things had dried out a bit.

Fred Holloway, winemaker at Justin Vineyards, said, “It ended up being a fairly lengthy harvest, letting us pick on a slow pace through the first part of November. It was kind of a laid-back harvest.”

Despite the irregular weather, many vintners are optimistic about the quality of California’s 2007 vintage. Cool temperatures toward the end of the growing season gave grapes time to develop varietal characteristics without acquiring too much sugar.

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